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State Birds
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Missouri Symbols
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Missouri State Bird
Native Eastern Bluebird
(Sialia sialis)
Adopted on March 30, 1927.
On March 30, 1927, the native bluebird, Sialia sialis, became the official state bird of Missouri. The bluebird, considered a symbol of happiness, is usually 6 1/2 to 7 inches long. While its upper parts are covered with light blue plumage, its breast is cinnamon red, turning
rust-colored in the fall. The bluebird is common in Missouri from early spring until late November.
Description of the
Missouri State Bird
Eastern bluebirds are small birds with short, slender beaks and short legs. They are brightly colored, with a blue upper
body, red breast, and white abdomen. Males have wing and tail feathers that are blue with black or gray shafts and tips.
Their heads are a lighter shade of blue, which fades into a red throat and breast area. The breast and belly are white
with light blue tips on some of the longer feathers. Females also exhibit this pattern of coloration, although they tend
to be duller than males and have more gray. Adult weight ranges from 27 to 34 grams. They are, on average 18 cm long
from the tip of their beak to the end of their tail.
- Length: 6 inches
- Thin bill
- Most often seen in open habitats
Adult male:
- Bright blue plumage; brightest on upperparts
- Lacks any brown coloration
Female:
- Blue wings and tail-duller than male
- Remainder of plumage gray
- Eye ring
Juvenile:
- Blue wings and tail-duller than male
- White eye ring
- Spotted underparts
Statute
Missouri Revised Statutes, Title 2, Chapter 10, Section 10.010.
TITLE II SOVEREIGNTY, JURISDICTION AND EMBLEMS
Chapter 10 State Emblems
SECTION 10.010.
Official state bird.
10.010. The native "bluebird" (Sialia Sialis) is selected for and shall be known as the official bird of the state
of Missouri.
(RSMo 1939 § 15439, RSMo 1949 § 10.070, A.L. 1957 p. 726)
Prior revision: 1929 § 14314
Taxonomic Hierarchy of the Eastern Bluebird
| Kingdom |
Animalia -- animals |
| Phylum |
Chordata -- chordates |
| Subphylum |
Vertebrata -- vertebrates |
| Class |
Aves -- birds |
| Order |
Passeriformes -- perching birds |
| Family |
Muscicapidae -- old world flycatchers |
| Genus |
Sialia Swainson, 1827 -- bluebirds |
| Species |
Sialia sialis ---- eastern bluebird |
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Official State Birds
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Bird:
a. Any of the class Aves of warm-blooded, egg-laying, feathered vertebrates with forelimbs modified to form wings.
b. Such an animal hunted as game.
c. Such an animal, especially a chicken or turkey, used as food
State Bird:
a. Bird selected (as by the legislature) as an emblem of a state of the United States.
NOTE: Many states have more than one official bird, or have designate state birds more specifically.
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